AP Tobacco Crop Size Pegged at 111 m kg

Source from:  The Hindu Business Line Our Bureau  07/22/2004

THE Virginia tobacco crop size in Andhra Pradesh has been fixed at 111.06 million kg for 2004-'05 by the Tobacco Board, at the same level as the previous season in spite of efforts to bring it down. The Board Chairman, Dr P. Dayachari, told reporters here that it had been decided by the production committee after a meeting with trade and farmers' representatives from Andhra Pradesh and Karnataka. The trade had wanted to bring it down to 95 million kg, but with the persuasion of the Principal Secretary (Agriculture), Mr A.K. Goel, and the Board Chairman, it had relented and agreed for the 111.06-million-kg crop size. Its contention that black soil tobacco should not exceed 35 million kg, as the demand for such tobacco was going down in the international market, was not accepted by the farmers and the board. The southern black soils were allocated 31.56 million kg and the central and northern black soils were given a quota of 10.58 million kg. The northern light soils tobacco was pegged at 28.92 million kg and the southern light soils at 40 million kg. The farmers' representatives from Karnataka, Mr Chowdaiah and Mr Mahesh, wanted a decision on the crop size in that State also. Dr Dayachari told them that since the matter was pending with the Union Commerce Ministry, the Board was not in a position to take a decision. Enditem